Chapter 28: The Angel’s Trial and the Cost of Light

After the previous test subject was confirmed to have left, the staff member finally opened the tightly shut door, allowing me to enter.

Inside lay a vast, circular training ground. Near the entrance, behind a table, sat a lean, formidable-looking middle-aged man, shirtless, engrossed in writing.

The sound of the door closing echoed behind me.

Hearing my entry, the middle-aged man set down his pen, turned his gaze towards me, and extended a hand.

“Ah…” I understood immediately, handing him the card I had already clutched in my hand.

“What a charming young lady… An angel? Are you certain?” The middle-aged man initially smiled dismissively, but the moment his eyes fell upon my card, his brow furrowed instantly.

“If you’re impersonating, you’ll be blacklisted by the association, you know.”

“Yes, that’s correct.” Hearing his warning, I quickly nodded in affirmation, simultaneously dispelling my concealment and unfurling the two pairs of wings from my back.

“A four-winged angel, indeed… So, angels’ wings can be concealed?” The middle-aged man seemed genuinely startled, apparently encountering an angel like me for the very first time.

“In that case, let’s begin.”

With my identity confirmed, he ceased all further pleasantries, rising to his feet and leading me to the edge of the training ground.

“I am Wordsworth Bulwer, your chief examiner, a 6th-tier swordsman.”

He gestured towards the array of weapons displayed on the racks surrounding us.

“Here, you may choose any weapon you desire.

You are permitted to attack me in any manner, including with magic.

Should you defeat me, it will prove you’ve reached a 6th-tier level.

If you deem my strength insufficient, you may also request a higher-tier examiner…”

As he delivered this standardized introduction to the test, he strode into the arena, taking his stand at the very center, awaiting my next move.

“The test duration is five minutes.”

Having absorbed all the instructions, I walked directly to the weapon rack and drew a longsword.

Although the only weapon I had previously wielded was Angelina’s Qi-Condensed Sword, a longsword was the most familiar option available to me here.

“Let us begin…” Seeing me stand before him with my chosen weapon, Wordsworth, who had initially been empty-handed, paused.

After a moment’s thought, he returned to the weapon rack and retrieved a longsword for himself.

A faint twitch played at the corner of my lips.

I yearned to tell him there was no need for such caution; I was quite aware of my own limitations after all this time.

To injure a 6th-tier swordsman was utterly impossible, and I doubted even Angelina could achieve it without her Qi-Condensed Sword.

In truth, my nerves had been tightly strung since I first entered.

After all, before my transmigration, I had barely been in a fight, and facing such a formidable expert, even for a skill test, was something my former self could never have imagined.

Fortunately, I had gained some combat experience previously, and my recent advancement to four wings had vastly increased my strength.

The longsword now felt almost weightless in my grasp, a sensation that instilled a newfound confidence within me.

Discreetly wiping the sweat from my palms, and knowing full well I possessed no swordsmanship, I took a deep breath, raised the longsword with one hand, and without a word, cleaved towards my opponent.

“Not bad! That power certainly surpasses a 4th-tier’s.” Wordsworth effortlessly parried my strike, offering his assessment even as he fluidly countered with a backhanded swing of his own sword.

Seeing this, I instantly took a step back, narrowly evading his counterattack.

“Hmm… your reactions and speed are decent as well.”

While his initial tone had been rather affirmative, after a few exchanges, he gradually began to sense something amiss.

“It seems you don’t possess any swordsmanship at all?”

“Uh…” My hand faltered at his words.

Had he truly seen through me? Given that I had been wildly slashing and stabbing without any discernible technique the entire time, it would have been stranger if he hadn’t noticed.

“I truly don’t…” My face flushed, I could only retreat to the side and admit it.

“Then why did you choose a sword?” He gazed at me with profound bewilderment, then, recalling something else, he asked, “Where is your light magic? I haven’t seen you use any.”

“I don’t know that either…” This was even more mortifying; I could barely bring myself to look him in the eye.

‘Knowing neither this nor that’ perfectly encapsulated my current situation, leaving me with no option but to rely on brute strength and physical prowess.

“This…” The examiner clearly hadn’t anticipated that a rare encounter with an angel, let alone a four-winged one, would yield such a result.

After pondering for a long while with a speechless expression, he finally resorted to commanding me, “Then continue attacking me with all your might.

Don’t stop!”

“Oh, alright!” Recognizing this as my final chance to prove myself, I no longer dared to hold back, unleashing my full strength as I charged at him.

“Clang… clang… clang… clang… clang…”

The training ground was filled almost entirely with the chaotic sounds of my wild slashes.

Yet, no matter the angle or direction from which I hacked and thrust at Wordsworth, his sword would invariably emerge from an uncanny position to block my blade, occasionally even launching a counterattack.

Having completely abandoned all reservations, I no longer resorted to retreating or dodging.

To avoid wasting any opportunity, I conceived a tactic: flying high with my wings to evade, then descending to unleash a gravity-assisted cleave.

“Excellent!” Wordsworth, seeing this, offered a rare word of praise.

“You utilize your physical advantages for suppressive attacks.”

Even so, it yielded no effect.

My opponent continued to effortlessly neutralize my attacks, without the slightest hint of discomposure.

“Five minutes are up…” No sooner had the words left his lips than my sword, momentarily unstable, was precisely disarmed and sent flying by his timely flick.

His own sword was then thrown with unerring accuracy back onto the weapon rack, settling perfectly into its original slot.

“Test complete.”

“H-how did I do?” I stammered, my heart sinking.

My mood was utterly dismal; I hadn’t anticipated the test would be so stringent, nor the examiner so formidable.

Despite the inherent advantages of my angelic body, I hadn’t gained any discernible upper hand.

“Hmm…” Wordsworth slowly returned to his former seat, musing for a moment before offering his assessment.

“While your physical attributes—strength, reaction, and speed—all distinctly exceed the 4th tier, your lack of martial arts fundamentals means I can only assign you a 3rd-tier evaluation.”

“Third tier, then.” This outcome was actually quite surprising, exceeding my expectations; I had initially anticipated a maximum of 2nd tier.

“However, your combat awareness is commendable, and your tactical thinking in battle is quite agile.

With further practice, you show significant potential in martial arts.” He paused, adding a few more complimentary remarks, which instantly brought a blush to my cheeks.

“Thank you!”

I bowed deeply, took my card from his hand, and was about to depart.

Wordsworth, however, suddenly added, “It’s quite peculiar that you, an angel, possess no knowledge of light magic whatsoever.

If possible, I strongly advise you to study it; it’s a tremendous advantage for your race.”

“Huh?” I paused, taken aback by his suggestion; it hadn’t occurred to me that he would bring up magic.

Yet, he was right.

My previous fights had been almost entirely close-quarters combat, completely devoid of magic.

And while he hadn’t used magic, that didn’t mean I couldn’t.

If I *could* wield magic, my evaluation would undoubtedly improve significantly.

“Understood.” I nodded, realizing I needed to start thinking about learning magic.

Stepping out of the room, I exhaled a sigh of relief, gazing at the words “Tier: 3rd” on the card in my hand.

The next opportunity for a comprehensive test wouldn’t be for another three months.

“How did it go?” Seeing me emerge, Tiffany, who had been waiting nearby, immediately rushed over.

Angelina, who was next in line, followed closely, entering the room.

“It was alright.” I handed her the card for her to see.

“Only 3rd tier!” Tiffany exclaimed in surprise upon seeing the number on the card, her expression one of indignant protest on my behalf.

“Could there be a mistake? You’re…”

Apparently realizing her voice had been too loud, she quickly covered her mouth.

“You know, even the most ordinary two-winged angels possess at least 4th-tier strength,” she whispered, pulling me into a corner.

“You clearly have four wings, so how are you only 3rd tier?”

What could I do?

Honestly, her outburst made me feel quite ashamed.

I hadn’t felt anything before, even considering 3rd tier quite fortunate.

But Tiffany’s reaction now made me realize I had practically disgraced the reputation of angels.

It wasn’t until I recounted a rough summary of what had transpired in the testing room that Tiffany finally seemed to grasp the situation.

“It’s all my fault; I completely forgot about your amnesia, which means you wouldn’t know light magic.”

‘It wasn’t really due to amnesia,’ I thought, ‘but if I could learn magic, it might somewhat compensate for my shortcomings.’

“Perhaps we should go look at the magic books?” I suggested to Tiffany.

In fact, a magic bookstore was conveniently located in a corner of the Adventurers’ Guild hall, a detail I hadn’t paid attention to until the examiner’s recent mention.

“Over there, huh…” Tiffany sounded somewhat hesitant at my words, yet she still accompanied me into the bookstore.

The shop itself resembled an ordinary bookstore, with the only distinction being that the books it sold contained various magical knowledge; outwardly, there was little to set it apart.

The bookstore was not large, occupying a small area.

After browsing for a bit, we quickly located books related to basic magic introductions, encompassing elemental magic like fire and water.

Books on light magic were scarce; it took me a long time to find just a few titles concerning light-elemental magic.

I casually picked up a copy of “Practical Light Magic,” which didn’t appear particularly thick, but when I tried to flip through it, I found it wouldn’t open at all.

“It’s enchanted,” Tiffany, standing beside me, commented.

“You can’t read it without paying.”

‘True,’ I mused.

‘If anyone could just flip through, memorize the gist, and learn it, wouldn’t that be getting it for free?’

“How much does it cost?” I searched every part of the book but found no marked price.

“The price is here,” Tiffany said, pointing to the area beneath the counter.

Following her gaze, I glanced at the spot, and the sight struck me like a bolt of lightning, leaving me utterly speechless with shock.

“75,000 Sila!?” My tongue felt like it was seizing up as I blurted out, “Why is it so expensive?”

“Shh, keep your voice down!” Startled by my outburst, Tiffany quickly pulled me out of the bookstore.

“Light magic books are inherently that expensive,” she explained slowly once we were further away.

“Furthermore, since this is within the Adventurers’ Guild hall, they naturally sell for even more.”

I understood that point; it was the same principle as how goods at train stations or airports are significantly more expensive than elsewhere.

However, the price difference here was simply outrageous.

“But the fire magic books next to it were less than 3,000 Sila…” Although I had only glimpsed the price, I had noticed that other introductory books for fire, wind, and earth magic were only around 3,000 Sila, with slightly pricier water magic introductory books costing just over 6,000 Sila.

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